Merry Christmas

We had a wonderful holiday season. We had a fun Christmas Eve party with Brandon's brother Darrick and his family. Betty sure knows how to make a feast. Kaitlyn also loved playing with Kim. She ate a ton of Hershey Kisses, too many, and woke up at 3 am on Christmas throwing up chocolate everywhere. It was very gross. After cleaning up, Kaitlyn got to cuddle with Mom and Dad. Ben woke up around 6 am for his first breakfast, then fell asleep in bed with Mom and Dad too. By about 8, Brandon and I were ready to wake up. Two kids taking up the entire bed is not fun. We had fun opening presents. Kaitlyn loved ripping the paper off any present she could find. Ben just wanted to eat the paper, so of course Kaitlyn and Dad had to help him open his presents. It was a great morning.

Later. we went to my Grandpa Joe and Grandma Norma's house. These are my dad's parents. We had a good visit and got to see more relatives. I love my grandparents so much and they are always so kind and generous.

Then, we went over to my parents house. I got to talk to my younger sister Jeanne, who is currently serving a mission in Texas. She is an amazing person and such an inspiration to me. We played games on the Wii, and I did pretty good bowling. We opened more presents and had more fun. We also had a great dinner. My mom and sister Jessi made a very delicious duck.

We decided to leave when it started snowing. It was an adventure getting home. The snow was coming down like crazy. The roads were icy and snow covered. My little car did not want to climb any hills, and you have to climb at least two to get to our house. After a long two hour ride, we made it home safely. It was a wonderful Christmas. I love being able to spend the day with family. It reminds me of the real reason for the season.

Santa

On Monday night, we took the kids to the mall to see Santa. Kaitlyn was really excited to go. She ran all over the house saying "Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas," because that is what Santa says. When we got to the mall, Kaitlyn was a little apprehensive to sit on his lap and talk to him. Santa was very nice and they started talking about the princess stuff she wants for Christmas. Ben was cute, like always. He sat on Santa's lap without any problems. We got a cute picture of both of the kids with Santa. It was a fun family night.

December is the month of birthdays. Kaitlyn, Ben , and I took Grandma Jody out to lunch for her birthday and we had a blast. I love being able to spend time with my mom. We heard that Alexia had a wonderful Hannah Montana birthday party. We are glad she had a great day. We hope that Jacki and Jared had happy birthdays. We also wish Steven a very happy birthday.

We are still doing good. The kids keep me busy and I love watching them grow. They bring such joy into our home. I especially love this time of year. I love teaching Kaitlyn about the birth of Jesus. This time of year reminds me of how truly blessed we are and of how we need to share those blessing with others. We are trying to have the Christ Spirit in our hearts and home.